Field
The present disclosure relates to pharmacy services, and more specifically, to a method and a system for acquiring and using images of preparations of substances. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to acquiring and using images of medication preparations.
Description of the Related Art
A pharmacist's scope of practice in institutions, such as hospitals, or correctional facilities, includes preparing, packaging, compounding, and labeling medication, compounding sterile products, as well as other medication related activities. Many technical functions involving the preparation and distribution of drugs may be performed in the institution by non-pharmacist personnel, usually a pharmacy technician, licensed nurse, pharmacy student, pharmacy intern, nursing student or trainee, or a pharmacy technician student or trainee. When a non-pharmacist (such as a technician) performs such functions, or when a pharmacist performs such functions involving high cost and/or high risk medications, a pharmacist must generally verify their work.
When technical pharmacy functions are performed (whether by a pharmacist, or a non-pharmacist, such as a nurse), a pharmacist typically verifies the work, in part, by comparing it to either a copy of the original medication order, or a medication order previously entered into the patient's medication profile. The pharmacist also supervises the work of the non-pharmacist, and verifies that the medication product has been correctly and accurately prepared, labeled, compounded, and/or packaged. When a non-pharmacist performs technical pharmacy functions involving prepackaging, labeling, bulk compounding, or batch preparation of medications that will serve as stock medication in the pharmacy department, a pharmacist must generally verify the work in much the same manner. The pharmacist must supervise the work of the non-pharmacist to verify that the medication has been correctly and accurately prepared, labeled, compounded, and/or packaged.
Preparation of medications typically involves several steps. Typically, a medication order, such as an order for a prescription drug or stock requisition, is delivered to a technician. The technician prepares the medication based on the specifications of the order, and according to an established protocol. The technician's work in preparing the medication is supervised and approved by a pharmacist.
Direct and personal oversight and approval by a pharmacist for preparation of medications is typically required, for example, under pharmacy laws and regulations of various states. In some cases, however, the pharmacist may not be at the facility where preparation of the medication occurs, or may be in the facility but not in an area enabling physically present direct supervision of the preparation of the medication. In such cases, approval may sometimes be carried out through the transmission or exchange of information such as photographs of the preparation at various stages and/or videoconferencing between the technician and the pharmacist.
Some preparation facilities have a camera that can be used to take photographs of various stages in the preparation of a medication. Image data from the camera may be transmitted (for example, over a computer network) to a remote location where the supervising pharmacist is. At the remote location, the pharmacist may use the photographs to monitor the preparation of the medication and notify the technician of the pharmacist's approval. Many existing cameras, however, are not suitable for a sterile medical environment. For example, many cameras have bases, stands, tripods, platforms, cables, or exterior surfaces of the camera that cannot be effectively sterilized without damaging the camera or related equipment. In addition, positioning the camera and managing the image data produced by the camera may be cumbersome and time-consuming, especially in facilities where multiple preparations are occurring at the same time.
Managing workflow and keeping track of the photographic data may also be difficult for technicians working with an off-site pharmacist, especially when multiple preparations are occurring simultaneously at the same preparation facility, or when one remote pharmacist is overseeing many preparations at more than one preparation facility.